Private server implementation of policy for printing system

ABSTRACT

A policy-based printing system is implemented to allow access to a private domain to print using a public domain. The private domain includes private servers that store documents. The public domain includes servers and a printing device. A public policy server uses a domain list and a protocol connection with a private authentication server to validate a user and identify which private domain to access. The public policy server receives requests from the printing device to process a print job of a document in the private domain. The private server processes the requests using the policy and a ledger to determine whether to allow the print job to the printing device.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a system of private and public serversthat implement policy-based printing operations. The system includes apublic and private network that supports the policy used for printingoperations, wherein the policy is implemented using a private server inthe private network.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

Existing policy-based printing systems mostly operate within a closedprivate domain environment. Print data submitted by users may be onlyaccessible within a single domain environment. Some users, such ason-the-go users including insurance and real estate agents, salesexecutives, lawyers, and company executives, require the capability toaccess printing data beyond an office environment. These users travelextensively and find themselves needing to print in public locations,such as convenience stores, libraries, airports, copy and printingservice stores, and the like. At these locations, the users may notreliably access the printing data. Further, these public locations maynot support policy-based printing.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A method for implementing a policy-based printing system is disclosed.The method includes receiving a request at a private server from apublic server in a public domain. The request corresponds to an actionto be performed at a printing device in the public domain. The methodalso includes compiling data from a ledger at the private serverregarding the action. The method also includes analyzing a policy forthe user at the private server using the compiled data. The policyincludes a parameter related to the action. The method also includesdetermining whether the action of the request is allowed at the printingdevice according to the policy. The method also includes generating aresponse based upon the determination to allow or deny the action of therequest.

A method for implementing policy-based printing is disclosed. The methodincludes receiving a plurality of requests at a private servercorresponding to a print job for processing a document stored at theprivate server. The method also includes determining a type for eachrequest. The type correlates to a parameter in a policy applicable tothe print job. The method also includes compiling data from a ledgerbased on the type of request. The method also includes determiningwhether to allow each request based on the compiled data and theparameters in the policy. The method also includes generating a responsefor the plurality of requests based on the determination.

A printing system is disclosed. The printing system includes a publicserver coupled to a printing device in a public domain to receive arequest corresponding to a print job of a document. The printing systemalso includes a private server in a private domain. The private serveris configured to store the document and to analyze a policy applicableto a user of the printing device. The private server includes a ledgerhaving at least one entry for actions taken by the user. The publicserver has a protocol connection to the private server. The privateserver receives the request from the public server. The private servercompiles data from the ledger based upon the request. The private serveranalyzes the policy to determine whether to allow or deny the requestbased on the compiled data.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various other features and attendant advantages of the present inventionwill be more fully appreciated when considered in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 depicts a system to implement policy-based printing on a printingdevice according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of components of the printing deviceused in conjunction with the authentication system according to thedisclosed embodiments.

FIG. 3 illustrates a flow diagram for implementing a policy-basedprinting system according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 4A illustrates a domain list for use within the policy-basedprinting system according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 4B illustrates a policy for use within the policy-based printingsystem according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of servers and data used within thepolicy-based printing system according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart for printing at a printing device withinthe policy-based printing system according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flowchart for implementing a policy-based printingsystem in a public domain according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 8 illustrates a flowchart for implementing a policy-based printingsystem using tokens according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 9 illustrates a flowchart for selecting a plurality of print jobsfrom a plurality of private domains for printing in a public domainaccording to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 10 illustrates a policy-based system to implement policy-basedprinting using a private server according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 11 illustrates a block diagram of implementation of the policyusing the private server according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 12 illustrates a flowchart for implementing a policy at the privateserver according to the disclosed embodiments.

FIG. 13 illustrates a flowchart for analyzing the policy by the privateserver according to the disclosed embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to specific embodiments of thepresent invention. Examples of these embodiments are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings. Numerous specific details are set forth in orderto provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. While theembodiments will be described in conjunction with the drawings, it willbe understood that the following description is not intended to limitthe present invention to any one embodiment. On the contrary, thefollowing description is intended to cover alternatives, modifications,and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of theappended claims. Numerous specific details are set forth in order toprovide a thorough understanding of the present invention.

The disclosed embodiments use an authentication server, a policy server,a file server, a network enabled printing device, and a public domainserver. At the printing device, a user may provide authenticationinformation, such as a username or password. The authenticationinformation is transmitted from the device to a public domain serverthat processes the username for domain information. The domaininformation is matched to a domain on record and a private server isidentified that can handle the domain authentication. The public domainserver, through a direct connection to the private server, will gothrough a series of steps to obtain an authentication token, a policyapplicable to the user, a job list of the user, and the job binary datafor printing a print job on the printing device.

FIG. 1 depicts a system 100 to implement policy-based printing on aprinting device 104 according to the disclosed embodiments. System 100includes network 102 which exchanges data between the public and privatedomains within system 100. System 100 allows a user to retrieve a printjob having job binary data 140 from a private domain server to print onprinting device 104. Printing device 104 may be any device thatprocesses the binary data to generate an electronic document that isthen printed or accessed by the user. Printing device 104 also may beknown as an image forming apparatus or a multi-functional printer. Forexample, printing device 104 may print on a sheet of paper the documentgenerated from binary data 140. Alternatively, printing device 104 maydisplay the electronic document to the user. Printing device 104 alsomay store the binary data for the print job. Printing device includesengine 106, which performs many of the operations to print, scan, store,modify, and the like. Printing device 104 and engine 106 are disclosedin greater detail below with reference to FIG. 2.

System 100 include public domain 110 and private domains 120 and 130.Public domain 110 may represent a collection of public servers anddevices linked to network 102. In some embodiments, these servers arecloud servers. Public domain 110 also may be known as a public networkof the public servers. Public domain 110 is accessible by printingdevice 104. Additional printing devices may connect to public domain110, such shown by printing device 105. The printing devices may belocated in public places, such as convenience stores, libraries,printing and copying stores and kiosks, and the like. Users may accessthe printing devices and, in turn, the servers within public domain 110.The users may need to validate their ability to access public domain 110through a connected printing device.

Public domain 110 includes public policy server 112. Public policyserver 112 interacts with private domains 120 and 130 as well asprinting devices 104 and 105. Public policy server 112 may act as themiddle man between public domain 110 and the private domains. Publicpolicy server 112 may generate and store tokens used to implement thepolicy-based operations disclosed below. It also may store and allowaccess to a policy 142 received from a private domain, upon request.Policy 142, disclosed in greater detail below, outlines what a user canand cannot do when printing to printing device 104 from a privatedomain.

Public file server 114 is connected to public policy server 112. Publicfile server 114 may store or host binary data 140 for print job from aprivate domain. Printing device 104 may retrieve binary data 140securely for a print job. In some embodiments, printing device 104 doesso through public policy server 112. Public file server 114 also mayreceive binary data 140 from a server in a private domain, as disclosedbelow.

System 100 includes private domains 120 and 140. System 100 may includeadditional private domains, not shown here. Each private domain mayinclude a plurality of private servers that are protected by a firewallfrom access from network 102. For example, private domain 120 includesfirewall 122. Firewall 122 may be a software or hardware device thatfilters data and information coming over network 102 to private domain120 for malicious or unauthorized access. If an incoming packet of datais flagged by the filters in firewall 122, then it is not allowedthrough to private domain 120. Firewall 132 may serve the same functionfor private domain 130.

Private domain 120 includes private authentication server 124, privatejob server 126, and private policy server 128. Private domain 130includes private authentication server 134, private job server 126, andprivate policy server 128. The servers for private domain 120 aredisclosed below, but their functionality may apply to the servers inprivate domain 130. Further, additional servers may be in a privatedomain and used securely to exchange information over network 102.

Private authentication server 124 is a private domain server that willprovide authentication and authorize a user to prove his/her identify.Private authentication server 124 may be the main server that connectsthe private and public domain information exchange. In some embodiments,private authentication server 124 establishes a protocol connection 144with public policy server 112 to provide a domain list 146 for access toprivate domain 120. Private authentication server 124 also verifies auser trying to access private domain 120 using public policy server 112.

Private job server 126 is a private domain server that stores all thebinary data for the job files, or print jobs. When a user wants to printout a job file at printing device 104, private job server 126 should bequeried in order to retrieve binary data 140 to generate the print job.Private job server 126 may forward binary data 140 to public file server114 according to policy 142.

Private policy server 128 is a private domain server that hosts orstores all the policies, such as policy 142, related to a user. Whenprinting device 104 attempts to perform any function, it should requestprivate policy server 128 determine whether the user is allowed to doso. Private policy 128 may do the determination via public policy server112.

The disclosed embodiments allow access to private servers from a publicdomain or to print on printing device 104 within a public network. Anintranet application may do the authentication and job spooling so usersneed to authenticate printing device 104 before use. A policy may beassociated with where a user can print, what kind of paper, number ofpages, and the like. For example, some users may want to print from apublic location, such as a convenience store, and want to access aprivate server that stores the print jobs. They would need access fromnetwork 102.

In some embodiments, public policy server 112 is a cloud server. Publicpolicy server 112 may not be able to do accounting policy management todetermine whether a user is allowed to print at printing device 104.Private domains 120 and 130 can operate over the cloud. Public policyserver 112 may enforce the rules of the policy but management of thepolicy is still at a private server. Public policy server 112 also needsto distinguish between the private servers and private domains. Thus, ifa user is outside the private network for a private domain, publicpolicy server 112 will find the correct private domain to connect. Thatprivate domain will validate the user and access or use of the printjob.

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of components of printing device 104used in conjunction with system 100 according to the disclosedembodiments. The architecture shown in FIG. 2 may apply to anymulti-functional printer or image forming apparatus that scans documentsto perform other functions, such as printing, storing, copying, and thelike. As disclosed above, printing device 104 may send and receive datafrom public domain 110 and private domains 120 and 130.

Printing device 104 includes a computing platform 201 that performsoperations to support these functions. Computing platform 201 includes acomputer processing unit (CPU) 202, an image forming unit 204, a memoryunit 206, and a network communication interface 210. Other componentsmay be included but are not shown for brevity. Printing device 104,using computing platform 201, may be configured to perform variousoperations, such as scanning, copying, printing, receiving or sending afacsimile, or document processing. As such, printing 104 may be aprinting device or a multi-function peripheral including a scanner, andone or more functions of a copier, a facsimile device, and a printer. Toprovide these functions, printing device 104 includes printer components220 to perform printing operations, copier components 222 to performcopying operations, scanner components 224 to perform scanningoperations, and facsimile components 226 to receive and send facsimiledocuments. CPU 202 may issue instructions to these components to performthe desired operations.

Printing device 104 also includes a finisher 211 and one or more papercassettes 212. Finisher 211 includes rotatable downstream rollers tomove papers with an image formed surface after the desired operation toa tray. Finisher 211 also may perform additional actions, such assorting the finished papers, binding sheets of papers with staples,doubling, creasing, punching holes, folding, and the like. Papercassettes 212 supply paper to image the various components 220, 222,224, and 226 to create the image formed surfaces on the papers. Papercassettes 212 may include papers having various sizes, colors,composition, and the like. Paper cassettes 212 may be removed to refillas needed.

Document processor input feeder tray 230 may be the physical componentsof printing device 104 to receive papers and documents to be processed.A document is placed on or in document processor input feeder tray 230,which moves the document to other components within printing device 104.The movement of the document from document processor input feeder tray230 may be controlled by the instructions input by the user. Forexample, the document may move to a scanner flatbed for scanningoperations. Thus, document processor input feeder tray 230 provides thedocument to scanner components 220. As shown in FIG. 2, documentprocessor input feeder tray 230 may interact with engine firmware 106 toperform the desired operations.

Memory unit 206 includes memory storage locations 214 to storeinstructions 215. Instructions 215 are executable on CPU 202 or otherprocessors associated with printing device 104, such as any processorswithin components 220, 222, 224, or 226. Memory unit 206 also may storeinformation for various programs and applications, as well as dataspecific to printing device 104. For example, a storage location 214 mayinclude data for running an operating system executed by computingplatform 201 to support the components within printing device 104.According to the disclosed embodiments, memory unit 206 may store thetokens and codes used in performing the authentication operations forprinting device 104.

Memory unit 206 may comprise volatile and non-volatile memory. Volatilememory may include random access memory (RAM). Examples of non-volatilememory may include read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, electricallyerasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), digital tape, a harddisk drive (HDD), or a solid-state drive (SSD). Memory unit 206 alsoincludes any combination of readable or writable volatile memories ornon-volatile memories, along with other possible memory devices.

Computing platform 201 may host one or more processors, such as CPU 202.These processors are capable of executing instructions 215 stored at oneor more storage locations 214. By executing these instructions, theprocessors cause printing device 104 to perform various operations. Theprocessors also may incorporate processing units for specific purposes,such as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and fieldprogrammable gate arrays (FPGAs). Other processors may be included forexecuting operations particular to components 220, 222, 224, and 226. Inother words, the particular processors may cause printing device 104 toact as a printer, copier, scanner, and a facsimile device.

Printing device 104 also includes an operations panel 208, which may beconnected to computing platform 201. Operations panel 208 may include adisplay unit 216 and an input unit 217 for facilitating interaction witha user to provide commands to printing device 104. Display unit 216 maybe any electronic video display, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD).Input unit 217 may include any combination of devices that allow usersto input information into operations panel 208, such as buttons, a touchscreen, a keyboard or keypad, switches, dials, and the like. Preferably,input unit 217 includes a touch-screen digitizer overlaid onto displayunit 216 that senses touch to receive inputs from the user. By thismanner, the user interacts with display unit 216. Using thesecomponents, one may enter an identification code 138 generated by mobileapplication 110 into printing device 104.

Printing device 104 also includes network communication processing unit218. Network communication processing unit 218 may establish a networkcommunication, such as a wireless or wired connection with one or moreother image forming apparatuses and a server in an image forming system.CPU 202 may instruct network communication processing unit 218 totransmit or retrieve information over a network using networkcommunication interface 210. As data is received at computing platform201 over a network, network communication processing unit 218 decodesthe incoming packets and delivers them to CPU 202. CPU 202 may actaccordingly by causing operations to occur on printing device 104. CPU202 also may retrieve information stored in memory unit 206, such assettings for printing device 104.

Printing device 104 also includes engine 106. Engine 106 may be acombination of hardware, firmware, or software components that actaccordingly to accomplish a task. For example, engine 106 is comprisedof the components and software to print a document. It may receiveinstructions from computing platform 201 after user input via operationspanel 208. Alternatively, engine 106 may receive instructions from otherattached or linked devices.

Engine 106 manages and operates the low-level mechanism of the printingdevice engine, such as hardware components that actuate placement oftoner onto paper. Engine 106 may manage and coordinate the half-toner,toner cartridges, rollers, schedulers, storage, input/output operations,and the like. Raster image processor (RIP) firmware 290 that interpretsthe page description languages (PDLs) would transmit and sendinstructions down to the lower-level engine 106 for actual rendering ofan image and application of the toner onto paper during operations onprinting device 104.

FIG. 3 depicts a flow diagram 300 for implementing policy-based printingsystem 100 according to the disclosed embodiments. In disclosing theembodiments shown by flow diagram 300, reference may be made to elementsshown in FIGS. 1-2 and 4A, 4B, and 5. Flow diagram 300 shows theoperations between the various servers disclosed in FIG. 1 above. Flowdiagram 300 also depicts the actions taken at the various servers. Theprivate and public servers may perform additional operations and actionsnot shown herein. The operations may be executed over network 102.Further, flow diagram 300 shows the operations between public domain 110and private domain 120. Thus, firewall 122 may exist between the publicservers and the private servers. The same operations may be executedbetween public domain 110 and private domain 130.

The processes disclosed by flow diagram 300 seek to solve the problem ofhow to authenticate a user in one location, such as a convenience storewith printing services, that he/she is within an organization that has apolicy applicable to the user. Further, the policy is stored in aprivate domain not readily accessible from the printing device at theconvenience store. The printing device is connected to a public networkand may be part of a public domain, such as public domain 110. Thedisclosed embodiments enable the user and the organization to implementthe policy, which is applicable to the private domain, within the publicdomain of the printing device located in the convenience store.

Operation 302 executes by private authentication server 124 sending aninitialization request to public policy server 112. As disclosed above,private authentication server 124 is within private domain 120 andpublic policy server 112 is within public domain 110. To send theinitialization request, an administrator enter information about publicpolicy server 112. Such information may include server network address,location, server capabilities, and the like. Once the information isentered, private authentication server 124 generates a verificationtoken 502 which verifies that public policy server 112 is acceptable toreceive information and communicate with the private authenticationserver.

Operation 304 executes by returning acceptance of the initializationrequest and establishing a protocol connection 144 between privateauthentication server 124 and public policy server 112. Protocolconnection 144 may stay established as long as public policy server hasverification token 502. Verification token 502 may be stored on publicpolicy server 112 and presented whenever verification is required byprivate authentication server 124. Protocol connection 144 provides apersistent connection between private authentication server 124 andpublic policy server 112 that allows the servers to send data at anytime. Protocol connection 144 preferably may be known as a WebSocketconnection, which provides a full-duplex communication channel over asingle connection. Preferably, protocol connection 144 uses a secureprotocol.

Operation 306 executes by providing a domain list 400 from privateauthentication server 124 to public policy server 112. This operationalso may include providing the information about the privateauthentication server. Action 308 executes by setting domain list 400 atpublic policy server 112 to include domain information for privateauthentication server 124. Public policy server 112 may refer to domainlist 400 whenever a user attempts to print from a private domain. Publicpolicy server 112 may use information provided by the user to determinewhich domain to obtain policy 142. For example, public policy server 112may be connected to more than one private domain. Domain list 400determines which private domain applies to a user trying to print.

FIG. 4A depicts an example domain list according to the disclosedembodiments. Domain list 400 may be a file having fields for the privatedomains and the email domains associated with each domain. A user isidentified as part of a domain using his/her email address. Publicpolicy server 112 will compare the email provided by the user todetermine which private domain to access. As shown in FIG. 4A, privatedomain 120 may be associated with two email domains 402 and 404. A userhaving an email domain with “@example1.com” or “@example2.com” will haveits policy and associated documents located on private domain 120. Auser having an email domain 406 with “@company.com” will have its policyand associated documents located on private domain 130. Additionalprivate domains may be served by public policy server 112. Privatedomain N will receive requests for policies of users having email domain408 of “@firm.com” and private domain N+1 will receive requests forpolicies of users having email domain 410 of “@college.com.”

As can be seen, companies, firms, and colleges have an interest inkeeping their network domains private. Further, these entities may wishto limit use of printing devices within public domains according to apolicy. Domain list 400 also may include an entry for a public domain,such as public domain X. In some instances, a public domain also mayinclude policies to limit capabilities of a user on a printing device104. These policies, however, may not be within a private domain andavailable for retrieving through a public network connection. An emaildomain of “@website.com” may direct public policy server 112 to a publicdomain for the associated policy 142. Referring back to FIG. 3,operation 310 returns an acknowledgement to private authenticationserver 124 that domain list 400 has been set and protocol connection 144exists with public policy server 112.

Operation 312 executes when a user wants to print a document at printingdevice 104 coupled to public policy server 112. Authenticationinformation 504 is provided from public policy server 112 to privateauthentication server 124. In some embodiments, the user enters ausername and password that is captured by public policy server 112. Forexample, the user may enter this information at printing device 104which forwards it to public policy server 112. Alternatively, the usermay connect to public policy server 112 through an application on amobile device or the like to provide authentication information 504.

In other embodiments, the user may enter a code, such as a personalidentification number (PIN), that retrieves this information to provideit to public policy server 112. Public policy server 112 receives thecode and matches the user information when the code is provided. Otherembodiments may use a graphical code or identification card having anumber that provides this information. Operation 312 sends thisauthentication information 504, such as username, password and PIN, toprivate authentication server 124.

Action 314 executes by authenticating the user with authenticationinformation 504. Thus, user information is not stored on public policyserver 112. Authentication still occurs in private domain 120 behindfirewall 122. If the user is authenticated, then action 314 alsoincludes private authentication server 124 generating authenticationtoken 506. Operation 316 executes by indicating that the user has beenvalidated and providing authentication token 506 to public policy server112. Public policy server 112 may assign authentication token 506 to theuser. Using the PIN example, the entered PIN may be associated withauthentication token 506.

Private authentication server 124 also may provide an email address orthe email domain, such as email domains 402-412 shown in FIG. 4A, topublic policy server 112 if this information is not already available.For example, it may be too cumbersome to enter email addresses atprinting device 104. Further, the administrators of private domain 120may not want valid email addresses being entered at printing device 104on a public network or in a public place. Thus, no email address isprovided to public policy server 112 from within public domain 110 but,instead, from private domain 120. Moreover, private authenticationserver 124 may provide only the domain and not the actual email address.

Once validated, public policy server 112 now retrieves a policy 142 fromprivate policy server 128. Operation 318 executes by getting policy 142.The email domain is compared against domain list 400 to determine whichprivate domain to query for the policy. In this example,user@example1.com is the email provided to public policy server 112. Itcompares the email to domain list 400 to determine the applicable policyis within private domain 120. Public policy server 112 sends determineddomain 508, such as example1.com, along with authentication token 506 toprivate policy server 128 in operation 318. If the next user has anemail domain of @company.com, then public policy server 112 determinesthat domain 508 is company.com and that the applicable policy is locatedin private domain 130.

Action 320 executes by identifying policy 142 as being applicable to theuser based on domain 508. Authentication token 506 may be associatedwith the user and this information provided from private authenticationserver 124. Policy 142 may be a file having flags or other informationto indicate what the user can do within a public network. For example,limitations may be set as to what type of printing can be done, thenumber of pages may be printed, and the like. FIG. 4B depicts a blockdiagram of an example policy for policy 142 according to the disclosedembodiments.

Policy 142 may include policy information 448. Policy information 448may include a title of the policy, document information, and privatedomain information. Policy 142 includes data, such as flags, thatindicates what can and cannot be performed in public domain 110. Thisdata may be known as parameters in policy 142. Examples of parametersthat limit printing operations are shown in FIG. 4B. Print parameter 449may be set to indicate whether a user can even print outside privatedomain 120. Certain users may not be allowed to print in a publicdomain. Print parameter 449 may be set to limit these users to scanningdocuments only or other operations that do not allow access to anydocuments or information stored in private domain 120.

Color parameter 450 may indicate whether the user can do color printingin public domain 110. If no, then the user may be limited to only blackand write printing. The user may be allowed to do color printing atprinting devices in private domain 120 but not allowed to do so in apublic domain setting.

Pages parameter 452 may set a limit on the number of pages that a usercan print. The administrators of private domain 120 do not wantunlimited printing to occur outside the private domain. Pages parameter452 may limit the number of pages printed per day, week, month, hour,year, and the like. Alternatively, pages parameter 452 may cap thenumber of pages printed to have the user check with the administratorsof public domain 120 to reset this parameter. Once the user hits alimit, he/she requests that the number of pages printed be reset toallow further operations. Costs parameter 454 may be similar to pagesparameter 452 except to limit the amount of fees that the user may incurbefore printing is stopped. Costs parameter 454 helps prevent the userfrom running up large bills at a convenience store. It also may cap theamount of costs incurred on a periodic basis or as a total cost.

Security level parameter 456 may indicate that the user can only accessdocuments from a job list provided from private job server 126 having acertain security or access level. Security level parameter 456 may helpprevent accidental or intentional printing of sensitive documents atprinting device 104. Further, the user may have access to sensitivedocuments when printing within private domain 120 but not so whenprinting using public domain 110. Policy 142 may limit exposure to suchdocuments.

Location parameter 458 may indicate whether the user can print atcertain locations. Policy 142 may place geographic or other limitationson where the user can print using a public domain. Location parameter458 also may indicate the type of locations to allow printingoperations. For example, the administrators of private domain 120 maynot allow printing in a convenience store but may allow printing in alibrary. Device parameter 460 may act similar to location parameter 458except limit printing on certain devices. For example, policy 142 maynot allow printing on a printing device 104 that does not have legalsized paper capability or stores the data from the job file in a memoryon the device. Device parameter 460 also may limit printing operationsto known printing devices having a serial number or IP address.

Operation 322 executes by providing policy 142 to public policy server112. Public policy server 112 may configure policy 142 to determinewhether the user can print using public domain 110 and what limits onthe printing operations may be enforced. Policy 142 may apply to allusers of private domain 120. Alternatively, policy 142 may treat usersdifferently. Some users may have unlimited printing privileges accordingto parameters 452 or 454 while others are prevented from exceeding a capset forth by these parameters. Public policy server 112 configures thedeterminations using policy 142 accordingly.

Using the parameters within policy 142, operation 324 executes bygetting a job list from private job server 126. Public policy server 112may generate a job token 510. Job token 510 is presented to private jobserver 126 to obtain a job list 511 of print jobs available to the user.In some embodiments, job token 510 may include data that specifies whatprint jobs can be added to job list 511 based on the parameters setforth in policy 146. Job list 511 includes those print jobs that meetthe specifications of policy 146. For example, color print jobs will notbe included in job list 511 of policy 146 does not allow color printingfor the user in a public domain. Action 326 executes by generating joblist 511 in response to job token 510. Operation 322 executes by sendingthe print jobs in job list 511 to public policy server 112 from privatejob server 126.

The user then may select a print job from job list 511. The user mayselect from an interface provided on printing device 104 that is thencommunicated to public policy server 112. Alternatively, an applicationmay execute on a device of the user that presents the job list andallows for selection from the list. The selection is sent to publicpolicy server 112. Operation 330 executes by sending a command toprivate job server 126 to prepare a selected print job along with auniform resource locator (URL) address from public policy server 112.The URL address is one associate with public policy server 112 andaccessible from public domain 110.

Action 332 executes by retrieving and preparing the data for the printjob. Preferably, the data is binary data that represents the documentfor the print job. This may be shown as binary data 140 in FIGS. 1 and5. Action 332 also may convert the data into a format compatible withprinting device 104. For example, the document may include data thatcalls for printing on a legal sized paper while printing device 104 onlyprints using letter sized paper. The data sent from private job server126 may be modified to fit onto a letter sized paper.

Operation 334 executes by uploading binary data 140 to the URL addressprovided in operation 330. Thus, private job server 126 puts the datafor the print job outside private domain 120 for the first time at thispoint. The URL address may be valid for only a specified period of time,such as two hours, one day, a week, and the like. After that point, theURL address may expire. The URL address to download binary data 140 forthe print job is provided to public file server 114.

Public policy server 112 now retrieves binary data 140 and sends thedata to printing device 104. Before that occurs, however, the disclosedembodiments may confirm whether the user has enough funds to pay forprocessing and completing the print job. Operation 336 executes bygenerating a confirmation token 514 at public policy server 112 once itis confirmed that the user or user's account has enough money to coverexpenses to print. Public policy server 112 may compare the fundsavailable to the cost to complete the print job. If there are enoughfunds, then confirmation token 514 is generated and sent to public fileserver 114. If not, then the user may be alerted to add more funds tohis/her account.

Action 338 executes by obtaining uploaded binary data 140 from the URLaddress. Public file server 114 may send a call to the URL address whichthen sends binary data 140 to the public file server. Public file server114 may store binary data 140 until confirmation token 514 is received.If a confirmation token 514 is not received within a specified timeframe, then binary data 140 may be deleted from public file server 114.This feature prevents print jobs from private domain 120 from beingstored indefinitely in public domain 110. Other factors may be used todetermine when to delete any stored files of binary data.

Operation 340 executes by sending binary data 140 for the print job frompublic file server 114 to public policy server 112. Operation 342executes by sending binary data 140 from public policy server 112 toprinting device 104. Printing device 104 may process the print jobaccordingly. The user's account for printing on public domain 110 may becharged accordingly as well. In some embodiments, public file server 114may send binary data 140 to printing device 104.

The disclosed embodiments allow a private domain, or network, to printto a public domain using a policy applicable to the public domain.Internal policies to the private domain are not material to printing inthe public domain. Further, job data is kept private as long aspossible. The data for the print job is provided to the public domainwhen requested by the user and approved according to the policy. Thisfeature allows the user to print anywhere. The print job is notautomatically sent outside the private domain or from the privateservers until printing actually occurs. The disclosed embodimentsprovide greater flexibility for companies and users to access documentsin a secure, private location and use devices and resources in a publicsetting.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart 600 for printing at printing device 104within policy-based printing system 100 according to the disclosedembodiments. Flowchart 600 may refer back to elements disclosed in FIGS.1-5 for illustrative purposes. The embodiments disclosed by flowchart600, however, are not limited to the features disclosed in FIGS. 1-5.Further, flowchart 600 may compliment the embodiments disclosed by flowdiagram 300.

Step 602 executes by establishing a protocol connection 144 betweenprivate authentication server 124 and public policy server 112. Theprotocol connection allows communication between the servers, one inprivate domain 120 and another one in public domain 110. Step 604executes by providing a domain list 146 from private authenticationserver 124 to public policy server 112. Domain list 146 may includeapplicable private domains and associated email domains that areaccessible by public policy server 112. Step 606 executes by enteringuser data 504 within public network 110 and providing the data to publicpolicy server 112. Step 608 executes by sending user data 504 to privateauthentication server 124.

Step 610 executes by validating the user at private authenticationserver 124. Private authentication server 124 checks the provided userdata 504 against its stored authentication records for the user. If theuser is validated, then step 612 executes by generating authenticationtoken 506. Step 614 executes by receiving authentication token 506 atpublic policy server 112. Step 616 executes by determining theapplicable private domain for the user according to domain list 146.Preferably, public policy server 112 uses the email address for the userto determine which private domain to access for the policy for the user.

Step 618 executes by retrieving policy 142 from private policy server128 based on the receipt of authentication token 506 and domain 508 frompublic policy server 112. Private policy server 128 is identifiedaccording to the applicable domain 508 and queried by public policyserver 112. Once verified, private policy server 128 sends policy 142 topublic policy server 112.

Step 620 executes by determining the parameters for policy 142. Thisprocess is disclosed above. As shown in FIG. 4B, policy 142 may includeparameters that outline what printing options are available to the user.Step 622 executes by applying the parameters to configure public policyserver 112 to determine what print jobs or operations are available tothe user in public domain 110.

Step 624 executes by determining whether the user is allowed to accessprinting device 104 using public domain 110 according to the policy.Further, step 624 determines what print jobs are available to the useraccording to policy 142. The determination also may include reviewingpolicy 142 for allowing other operations on printing device 104 such asscanning, editing, faxing, and the like. If no, then step 626 executesby sending a message to the user or public policy server 112 that theoperation on printing device 104 is not allowed.

If step 624 is yes, then step 628 executes by retrieving the print jobfrom private job server 126. A job list 511 may be provided. The printjob is selected from job list 511. Job token 510 is generated by publicpolicy server 112. Public policy server 112 sends job token 510 toprivate job server 126 to obtain job list 511. Upon selection of theprint job, private job server 126 uploads binary data 140 for the printjob to a location accessible by public file server 114. Step 630executes by confirming access to binary data 140 for the print job bychecking to see if the user has enough money to pay for using printingdevice 104. Other restrictions also may be checked, such as time of day,location, and the like, to confirm whether the print job should bereleased to printing device 104.

Step 632 executes by sending binary data 140 to printing device 104 uponconfirmation in step 630. Public policy server 112 generates aconfirmation token 514 to confirm that the user is allowed to print.Public policy server 112 may send confirmation token 514 to public fileserver 114. Upon receipt of the confirmation token, public file server114 may forward binary data 140 for the print job to public policyserver 112, which provides the data file to printing device 104.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flowchart 700 for implementing a policy-basedprinting system 100 in a public domain 110 according to the disclosedembodiments. Flowchart 700 may refer back to elements disclosed in FIGS.1-5 for illustrative purposes. The embodiments disclosed by flowchart700, however, are not limited to the features disclosed in FIGS. 1-5.Further, flowchart 700 may compliment the embodiments disclosed by flowdiagram 300.

As disclosed above, public policy server 112 may interact with aplurality of private domains. Public policy server 112 may retrieve andimplement more than one policy for printing or processing print jobs inpublic domain 110. In some embodiments, public policy server 112 mayimplement policies for a plurality of public domains as well. Further, aplurality of printing devices may be connected to public policy server112. Flowchart 700 discloses some embodiments that have public policyserver 112 interacting with more than one private domain.

Step 702 executes by validating users within public domain 110 atprivate authentication server 124. As disclosed above, a protocolconnection may be established between public policy server 112 andprivate authentication server 124 to exchange user information toperform the validation.

Step 704 executes by determining a private policy server for each useraccording to a domain for the user at public policy server 112. Thedomains for each user are private domains. Preferably, the email domainfor each user indicates the applicable private domain for that user.With two or more users, different email domains may indicate more thanone private domain. Step 706 executes by retrieving a policy 142 foreach user according to the respective domain from private policy server128.

Step 708 executes by determining the parameters for each policy 142. Allof the policies are received at public policy server 112. Public policyserver 112 configures the treatment of printing requests for eachprivate domain according to the corresponding policy. The policy setsforth the parameters for printing from the private domain via the publicdomain. For example, the parameters for one policy may only allow 100pages to be printed per user a month from private domain 120 while theparameters for another policy may only allow 20 pages to be printed peruser from private domain 130. Public policy server 112 is configuredaccordingly.

Step 710 executes by determining whether the user is allowed to printaccording to the applicable policy. If no, then step 712 executes bysending an alert to public policy server 112 or to the user. No printingoperations using public domain 110 are allowed. If yes, then step 714executes by receiving a job list according to the applicable policy fromprivate job server 126. Step 716 executes by making the print jobs inthe job list available to the user. Step 718 executes by selecting aprint job from the job list. Binary data 140 for the selected print jobis retrieved from private job server 126 and made available to publicfile server 114.

Step 720 executes by confirming whether the print job may be sent toprinting device 104. Public policy server 112 confirms that the user hasenough funds or credits to perform the request task on printing device104. If yes, then step 722 executes by sending the print job as binarydata 140 to printing device 104. If no, then step 724 executes bydenying the print job. The user may be prompted to provide additionalfunds or credits to perform the requested task.

FIG. 8 depicts a flowchart 800 for implementing a policy-based printingsystem 100 using tokens according to the disclosed embodiments.Flowchart 800 may refer back to elements disclosed in FIGS. 1-5 forillustrative purposes. The embodiments disclosed by flowchart 800,however, are not limited to the features disclosed in FIGS. 1-5.Further, flowchart 800 may compliment the embodiments disclosed by flowdiagram 300.

Step 802 executes by generating authentication token 506 at privateauthentication server 124. This step occurs once private authenticationserver 124 validates a user attempting to print using public domain 110.Public policy server 112 sends user information 504 including an emailaddress, username, password, or PIN to private authentication server124. Private authentication server 124, being in private domain 120, maysecurely store this information for the user. The secure userinformation is not made available in public domain 110. Authenticationtoken 506 indicates that the user may access private domain 120. Step804 executes by sending authentication token 506 to public policy server112.

Step 806 executes by sending authentication token 506 and domain 508 toprivate policy server 128. Public policy server 112 sends authenticationtoken 506 and domain 508 after the domain is determined using domainlist 146. An email address may indicate an email domain that is used asdomain 508. Domain 508 indicates which private domain to access for theapplicable policy. For example, referring to FIG. 4A, an email ofuser@example1.com will indicate private domain 120. Public policy server112 attaches authentication token 506 to domain 508 and sends therequest for the policy for the user.

Step 808 executes by retrieving policy 142 from private policy server128. Authentication token 506 confirms that the user corresponds to thepolicy. Authentication token 506 may include data provided by privateauthentication server 124 that identifies the user as able to useprivate domain 120 and, therefore, policy 142 for the private domainshould be used in printing on public domain 110. Private policy server128 sends policy 142 to public policy server 112. Public policy server112 then configures itself to apply the parameters of the policy tousing public domain for the user.

Step 810 executes by generating job token 510 at public policy server112 after applying the parameters of policy 142. The parameters maydetail what the user can do using public domain 110. These parametersmay not necessarily correspond to what the user can do using privatedomain 120. Limitations are placed on the user on how he/she can useprinting device 104. Job token 510 may reflect the parameters to compilethe job list of print jobs available to the user according to policy142.

Step 812 executes by sending job token 510 to private job server 126.Private job server 126 may store the print jobs available to the user orto users in private domain 120. In some embodiments, a plurality ofprint jobs may be available such that a job list 511 is generated basedon the parameters for the user in using public domain 110. Job token 510may be used in generating job list 511 in that it includes informationto select the appropriate print jobs to include in the print job list.

Step 814 executes by providing print job list 511 to public policyserver 112. The user may select a print job from print job list 511.Alternatively, the desired print job may already be selected such thatpublic policy server 112 receives data for the selection, such as froman application on a mobile device, that corresponds to the print job injob list 511. Public policy server 112 then requests the print job datafrom private job server 126. Step 816 executes by sending job binarydata 140 for the selected print job from private job server 126 topublic file server 114.

Step 818 executes by confirming whether the user may print or processthe print job at printing device 104. For example, public policy server112 may confirm that the user has enough funds in an account to pay forprinting on printing device 104. If step 818 is no, then step 820executes by sending an alert to the user or to public policy server 112that printing operations are to be stopped until the condition is met.Using the above example, the user may be asked to provide additionalfunds to his/her account to print the document.

If step 818 is yes, then step 822 executes by generating confirmationtoken 514 by public policy server 112. Confirmation token 514 indicatesthat the processing of binary data 140 at printing device 104 mayproceed. Step 824 executes by sending confirmation token 514 to publicfile server 114 to obtain binary data 140, which is stored thereon.Public file server 114 may send binary data 140 to public policy server112 upon receipt of confirmation token 514.

Step 826 executes by providing binary data 140 to printing device 104.Public policy server 112 may send binary data 140 once a connection isestablished with printing device 104. Public policy server 112 may haveto wait until printing device 104 is available before forwarding binarydata 140. Thus, the data from private job server 126 is not madeavailable on printing device 104 until the operations are ready tocommence. Although the current embodiments discuss printing on printingdevice 104, other operations also may occur, such as scanning, editing,faxing, and the like.

FIG. 9 depicts a flowchart 900 for selecting a plurality of print jobsfrom a plurality of private domains 120 and 130 for printing in publicdomain 110 according to the disclosed embodiments. Flowchart 900 mayrefer back to elements disclosed in FIGS. 1-5 for illustrative purposes.The embodiments disclosed by flowchart 900, however, are not limited tothe features disclosed in FIGS. 1-5. Further, flowchart 900 maycompliment the embodiments disclosed by flow diagram 300.

As disclosed above, different policies apply to different to users andprints jobs from different private domains. One private domain may notallow color printing while another private domain may not allowunlimited printing. Thus, public policy server 112 configures itself toresolve the different requirements set forth in a plurality of policiesfrom various private policy servers. Further, public policy server 112may manage different job lists and print jobs from the plurality ofprivate domains. Alternatively, a private domain may have differentdomains related to it, such as example1.com and example2.com for privatedomain 120 shown in FIG. 4A. Different policies may come from a singleprivate policy server.

Step 902 executes by generating verification token 502 at privateauthentication server 124. Private authentication server 124 receivesinformation about public policy server 112 in order to establish aprotocol connection. Verification token 502 helps to establish aconnection between private authentication server 124 and public policyserver 112. Private authentication server 134 also may generate averification token 502 to establish protocol connection to public policyserver 112.

Step 904 executes by sending verification token 502 to public policyserver 112. Step 906 executes by storing verification token 502 atpublic policy server 112. As long as public policy server 112 canpresent verification token 502 when requested or when submitting a printrequest for a user, the connection is established with privateauthentication server 124. Step 908 executes by providing domain list146 from private authentication server 124 to public policy server 112.Domain list 146 may include information pertaining to a plurality ofdomains for a plurality of private domains, as disclosed by FIG. 4A.

Step 910 executes by generating a first authentication token 506. Step912 executes by generating a second authentication token 506. The firstauthentication token may be generated in response to a first userproviding user information at public policy server 112. The secondauthentication token may be generated in response to a second userproviding user information at public policy server 112. Public policyserver 112 may access the appropriate private authentication server tovalidate the user information for each user. In some embodiments,private authentication server 124 may validate both users and generateboth authentication tokens. Alternatively, private authentication server124 may generate the first authentication token while privateauthentication server 134 may generate the second authentication token.Public policy server 112 may have instructions when to use the differentprivate authentication servers.

Step 914 executes by sending the first authentication token and a firstdomain to a first private policy server. Step 916 executes by sendingthe second authentication token and a second domain to a second policyserver. Public policy server 112 determines which private domain isapplicable to each user. The determination of the private domain may bebased on the email address for each user. In some embodiments, publicpolicy server 112 may send this data to a single private policy server,which stores different policies for different domains that use a singleprivate domain. Alternatively, the authentication tokens and domains maybe sent to separate private policy servers. For example, the firstauthentication token and first domain are sent to a first private policyserver, such as private policy server 128. The second authenticationtoken and the second domain are sent to a second private policy server,such as private policy server 138.

Flowchart 900 proceeds to steps A1 and A2 for steps 914 and 916,respectively. Steps A1 and A2 then proceed to steps 918 and 920,respectively. Step 918 executes by retrieving a first policy, such aspolicy 142, in response to the first authentication token and the firstdomain. Step 920 executes by retrieving a second policy, such as policy142, in response to the second authentication token and the seconddomain. In some embodiments, the first policy is stored on privatepolicy server 128 and the second policy is stored on private policyserver 138. Alternatively, both policies may be stored on private policyserver 128 or 138. The first policy may apply to the first user and thesecond policy may apply to the second user.

Step 922 executes by receiving the first and second policies at publicpolicy server 112. Step 924 executes by determining access to a firstprint job according to the first policy and access to a second print jobaccording to the second policy. Public policy server 112 may configurethe parameters of each policy to determine what type of print jobs maybe made available to each user. For example, the first print job may notbe available to the second user according to the second policy. Thedetermination of access may relate to what print jobs are available tothe users over public domain 110.

Step 926 executes by generating first and second job tokens, such as jobtoken 510, based on the first and second policies at public policyserver 112. A first job token is generated for the first policy and asecond job token for the second policy. In some embodiments, the firstjob token may be sent to private job server 126 and the second job tokenmay be sent to private job server 136. The different private job serversare in separate private domains. Alternatively, the job tokens may besent to private job server 126 or 136.

Step 928 executes by retrieving a first job list, such as job list 511,based on the first policy and the received first job token andretrieving the second job list, such as job list 511, based on thesecond policy and the received second job token. The applicable privatejob server or servers provide the job lists to public policy server 112.The first user may select a first print job from the first print joblist. The second user may select a second print job from the secondprint job list. These requests are communicated back to the applicationprivate job server or servers. The binary data for the first and secondprint jobs are sent to public file server 114.

Step 930 executes by generating confirmation tokens, such asconfirmation token 514, at public policy server 112 to indicate that theprint jobs may be processed at printing device 104. Public policy server112 may confirm that each user has enough funds in his/her account toperform operations on printing device 104, as disclosed above. A firstconfirmation token for the first print job is presented to public fileserver 114. A second confirmation token for the second print job ispresented to public file server 114. Public file server 114 provides thebinary data for each print job to public policy server 112. Step 932executes by sending the binary data for the first and second print jobsto printing device 104.

In some embodiments, it may be desired to not provide the policy to thepublic domain, either in a public domain server or the printing device.The policy could include details that are sent to many components withinthe system. Some servers and devices may not be able to implement thepolicy effectively. A policy may be a complex concept. Whenever policydata arrive at the device, the data may need to be parsed correctly andapplied correctly when a print job is sent to the device. Theseoperations may impose a heavy burden on the development and maintenanceof the device. Preferably, the printing system would like the printingdevice, for example, to focus on what it does, such as printing,scanning, or copying.

FIG. 10 illustrates a policy-based system 1000 to implement policy-basedprinting using a private server 1002 according to the disclosedembodiments. System 1000 may reduce development and maintenanceresponsibilities in multiple components in the system and provideadditional security with an advanced policy. In some embodiments, aprivate server at the corporate office, or private domain, has thepolicy set by an administrator. The policy changes frequently andbecomes more complex with each evolution of software within the printingsystem or on the devices.

On the private server, a ledger may exist on the private server thatrecords all the actions performed by all end user who are printing,copying, scanning, and the like within system 1000. The users mayutilize printing devices and servers in a public domain such that theyperform actions outside the normal corporate environment. A publicserver may serve as a gateway to the private domain. It may have openwebsocket bi-directional communication with the private server, asdisclosed above. The printing device is connected to the public networkand also is connected to the public server to determine whether it cando a simple action on behalf of the user in processing a document.

When a user prints a page, the printing device will ask the publicserver if it is allowed in a YES/NO format whether an action may betaken. In turn, the public server will query the private server. Theprivate server may examine the policy pertaining to the user or thedocument. It also may compile a ledger associated with the user todetermine if the action is allowed. The private server may send aresponse to the public server whether the action is allowed. The publicserver forwards the response to the printing device, which actsaccordingly.

FIG. 10 shows a policy-based system 1000 having a private server 1002, apublic server 1004, a printing device 1006, and a user device 1008.These components of the system may be disclosed above with regard toFIGS. 1-9. In system 1000, private server 1002 may refer to any of theservers in the private domain, such as private authentication server124, private job server 126, and private policy server 128 of privatedomain 120 shown in FIG. 1. Private server 1002 may be used in system1000 to mean any server in a private domain, as disclosed above. Privateserver 1002 may be separated from servers and printing devices in publicdomains by firewall 1011. Private server 1002 also stores and appliespolicy 1010. Policy 1010 may correspond to policy 142 disclosed above.

Public server 1004 may refer to any of the servers in the public domain,such as public file server 114 and public policy server 112 of publicdomain 110 shown in FIG. 1. Public server 1004 may be accessible by aplurality of printing devices, including printing device 1006. In thepublic domain, public server 1004 may manage print jobs going to variousprinting devices. It also may include a connection to private server1002, which has been verified and authenticated according to theprocesses disclosed above. For example, a websocket connection may existbetween private server 1002 and public server 1004.

Printing device 1006 may receive documents from public server 1004 aswell as other sources to print, copy, store, modify, and the like. Thefeatures of printing devices according to the disclosed embodiments aredisclosed above. Printing device 1006 may include device identification1018 that indicates a unique identifier within system 1000. In someembodiments, device identification 1018 may be a number, alphanumericcharacters, or a combination thereof. Public server 1004 may senddocuments and files to printing device 1006 based on deviceidentification 1018.

User device 1008 may be a mobile device, tablet, computer, and the like.User device 1008 may move between the private domain and the publicdomain, as separated by firewall 1011. It also may access private server1002 as well as public server 1004. A user may send and receive datafrom the servers at user device 1008. User device 1008 also may sendinstructions 1014 to printing device 1006 to print, copy, scan, and thelike document 1012 from private server 1002.

Private server 1002 may upload document 1012. Document 1012 may besimilar to the print jobs disclosed above. Document 1012 includes dataand information that is transmitted to devices within the privatedomain. The user of user device 1008 may upload document 1012. Document1012, however, may be processed at devices outside the public domain andnot necessarily at devices connected to private server 1002. Policy 1010also may be used to determine how and if document 1012 is used withinsystem 1000 outside the private domain.

The user may authenticate user device 1008 to public server 1004according to the disclosed embodiments. For example, user device 1008may provide verification data, such as a user/account name and password,to verify the user to public server 1004. This process may be disclosedabove with regard to verification between public policy server 112 andprivate authentication server 124. Alternatively, verification data 1016may be a token used by user device to authenticate the user in a publicdomain. Upon authentication, a websocket connection 1005 may beestablished to allow open bi-directional communication between privateserver 1002 and public server 1004.

In some embodiments, printing device 1006 receives instructions 1014from user device 1008 to process document 1012. An electronic copy ofdocument 1012 may be sent to printing device 1006 to process and print,copy, scan, and the like. The user also may modify the electronic copy.In summary, a document stored on private server 1002 is made availableon a public device.

Before receiving document 1012, printing device 1006 may determinewhether any action on behalf of the user is allowed at the printingdevice. An action by printing device 1006 is a simple operation ofprint, copy, scan, and the like. It may be measured in the smallestscale possible, such as a single page at a time. Thus, printing device1006 may send action request 1015 to public server 1004, which is thenforwarded to private server 1002. Preferably, action request 1015includes queries for policy 1010 as closed questions that result in aYES or NO response. Printing device 1006 merely has to determine whetherit can perform an operation or not. Printing device 1006 does not do anyanalysis of policy 1010.

Public server 1004 receives action request 1015 pertaining to the userinstructions to printing device 1006 to process document 1012. Publicserver 1004 may forward action request 1015 as request 1016 withoutfurther processing. In other embodiments, public server 1004 may breakdown action request 1015 into smaller requests that permit the responsesto be in a YES or NO format. These processes are disclosed in greaterdetail below.

Private server 1002 receives request 1016 from public server 1004 viawebsocket connection 1005. If no websocket connection exists, thenprivate server 1002 may not receive the request and public server 1004responds to printing device 1006 with an alert that printing, copying,scanning, and the like for action request 1015 is denied. Upon receiptof request 1016, private server 1002 analyzes policy 1010 to determinewhether the action is allowed for the user on printing device 1006.Private server 1002 also compiles or accesses ledger 1003 to determineif the action is allowed. Ledger 1003 may be a record or file of allfine grained action within system 1000 that provides the status of theaccount for the user. For example, ledger 1003 may indicate how manypages that the user has printed in the policy-set period, costsincurred, and other statistics of actions limited by policy 1010.

Update 1020 also may be received at private server 1002 that impactpolicy 1010 and ledger 1003. Update 1020 may change the parameters ofinterest to policy 1010 or provide temporary adjustments to the policy.For example, the user may exceed his/her printing page limit for a 24hour period. Policy 1010 and ledger 1003 are updated to reflect thischange. In the disclosed embodiments, update 1020 may be implemented ina more efficient manner by keeping policy 1010 at private server 1002 asopposed to having it stored on public server 1004. Private server 1002does not need to update policies in the public domain or on differentdevices because all policy analysis and determinations may be performedat the private server.

Depending on the results of the determination, private server 1002 sendsresponse 1022 to public server 1004. Response 1022 includes answers tothe YES or NO queries in request 1016. Response 1022 may include morethan one response, but is shown as a single response for brevity. Publicserver 1004 may analyze the response to ensure it is appropriate. Publicserver 1004 forwards response 1022 to printing device 1006, which actsaccordingly. In some embodiments, public server 1004 also may sendresponse 1022 or a message associated thereto to user device 1008. Theresponse sent to user device 1008 also may include statistics orinformation regarding the status of the user's account based on ledger1003 and policy 1010.

System 1000 shows user device 1008 sending instructions 1014 to printingdevice 1006. In some embodiments, the user may interact directly withprinting device 1006 to process document 1012 thereon. Use of a userdevice 1008 is not required to print, copy, or scan a document atprinting device 1006 or within the public domain.

FIG. 11 illustrates a block diagram of implementation of policy 1010using private server according 1002 to the disclosed embodiments. FIG.11 shows a more detailed version of the data moving within system 1000to implement policy 1010 at private server 1002 for a request receivedfrom the public domain. Although FIG. 11 does not show all thecomponents disclosed in system 1000, those components may still bereferenced for illustrative purposes.

Action request 1015 is received at public server 1004 from printingdevice 1006. Action request 1015 includes queries as to whether printingdevice may perform an operation, such as print a page. Action request1015 should be formatted by printing device 1006 to be a YES or NOquery. If it is not, then public server 1004 processes action request1015 into such queries.

Public server 1004 serves as the gateway server to private server 1002.Public server 1004 may receive requests and instructions from severalprinting devices in the public domain. Among other responsibilities,public server 1004 may break down or convert action request 1015 intorequests 1102, 1104, and 1106. The individual requests correspond to thespecific queries within action request 1015. In other embodiments,printing device 1006 forms requests 1102, 1104, and 1106 so that publicserver 1004 forwards them to private server 1002 without additional orminimal processing at the public server.

For example, the user may request to print document 1012 at printingdevice 1006. The print job, as disclosed above, may be for 12 pages ofcolor printing with a specified cost per page to print. Thus, printingdevice 1006 preferably sends requests at the smallest scale possible,such as one page at a time. An action request 1015 may be sent to publicserver 1004 for every page. Public server 1004 may break down the pagerequests to request 1102 for printing an additional page, request 1104for printing a color page, and request 1106 for adding the cost for thepage to the user's account.

These requests are in the format of a YES or NO format, such as can theuser print another page for request 1102, can the user print a colorpage for request 1104, and can the user incur the cost to print the pagefor request 1106. Private server 1002 may respond to each request byindicating “YES” or “NO.” Public server 1004 may then forward theresponses to printing device 1006.

Upon receipt at private server 1002, the server analyzes policy 1010 toanswer the requests. For example, policy 1010 may restrict the user toprinting in black and white, limited to printing 10 pages per day orcopying 30 pages a week, and may not exceed a set cost per week for allactions. To properly answer these questions, policy 1010 may accessledger 1003 to update the statistics for the user to see if the actionsrequest may be allowed.

Ledger 1003 may include a record of all fine-grained action, asreflected in the smallest scale possible. Thus, ledger 1003 includesentries 1110, 1112, and 1114, which indicates that the user printed apage having a certain format or characteristics at a date or timestamp.For example, the user may have previously printed three pages reflectedin each entry. The first page of the print job is entry 1110 along withwhether the page was color or not, size of the page (letter or legal),and the cost to print the page at the printing device along with atimestamp when the page was printed. Entries 1112 and 1114 includesimilar data for other pages printed by the user.

In processing requests 1102-06, private server 1002 may compile the dataavailable in ledger 1003 to determine if the user actions are stillwithin the policy parameters. Thus, policy 1010 is compared to thecompiled results to see if the individual requests regarding printingthe page are granted. Using the above example, private server 1002determines whether printing the page will exceed the daily limit of 10or the costs allowed to the user. Policy 1010 indicates that colorprinting is not allowed for the user. Update 1020, however, received atprivate server 1002 earlier that day may modify policy 1010 to allowcolor printing for the user for 24 hours.

Thus, if request 1102 is to print a page at printing device 1006 andledger 1003 indicates that only 8 pages have been printed that day, thenthe response to the request is yes. If request 1104 is to print a colorpage, then the response is yes based on update 1020 and that the requestis within the 24 hour time period granted by the update. If update 1020is not received, then private server 1002 may determine that the pagemay not be printed. If request 1106 is to increase the amount chargeableto the user's account by 10 cents, then the response is yes if theentries for the applicable period do not increase the total costs abovea set limit.

By analyzing policy 1010 and performing these query actions at privateserver 1002, the disclosed embodiments avoid the possible problem thatupdate 1020 is not received at public server 1004 or printing device1006. Update 1020 allows color printing for the user whereas policy 1010does not. If update 1020 is not received at public server 1004, forexample, then analyzing the policy at the public server would result ina “no” response to the print request. User would be able to fulfill therequest despite being allowed to do so. The disclosed embodiments avoidthis problem by processing requests at private server 1002.

Another example may relate to costs to print pages. The user pays or hashis/her account reset to zero to allow further costs to be incurred forprinting pages in the public domain. Ledger 1003 is updated to reset theaccrued costs to zero so that further print jobs do not exceed theaccount limit for the user. All of these operations may be done atprivate server 1002. If policy 1010 is on public server 1004, then thereset of the account may not be readily available despite the need forthe user to print document 1012. Further, public server 1004 would needto send further queries to private server 1002 to compile information onledger 1003 to respond to the print job request. The disclosedembodiments avoid this additional processing.

After the determinations are made, private server 1002 forward response1022 to the requests to public server 1004. Public server 1004 mayforward response 1022 to printing device 1006 to allow or denyprocessing of the document. Public server 1004 also may forwardinformation to user device 1008. In some embodiments, if the response toa individual request is “no” then public server 1004 may save thisresponse to respond back to the further requests for the print job. Asaction requests 1015 are sent for each page, public server 1004 may denyfurther requests for the print job if a response is no. For example, ifthe response to request 1104 is that no color pages may be printed forthe user, then public server 1004 may deny further requests to printpages for the print job.

FIG. 12 depicts a flowchart 1200 for implementing policy 1010 at privateserver 1002 according to the disclosed embodiments. FIG. 12 may refer tofeatures of FIGS. 10 and 11 as well as FIGS. 1-9 for illustrativepurposes. The embodiments disclosed by flowchart 1200, however, are notlimited to the disclosure of FIGS. 1-11.

Step 1202 executes by receiving a print job request at printing device1006 for document 1012 stored at private server 1002. Printing device1006 may be in a public domain outside the private domain for privateserver 1002. The print job request may include information for therequest, such as the number of pages, type of page, size, cost perpages, and the like. Printing device 1006 also may initially queryprivate server 1002 via public server 1004 to obtain information aboutdocument 1012, such as size, format, and the like. In other embodiments,this information may be available at public server 1004.

Step 1204 executes by parsing the parameters for the print job to thesmallest scale. The smallest scale may correspond to how the entries arepresented in ledger 1003. For example, ledger 1003 may store informationfor each page processed or printed for the user. Thus, printing device1006 may parse the print job to the individual pages, such that thesmallest scale is a single page. Step 1206 executes by generating actionrequest 1015 for each operation to be performed by printing device 1006in the smallest scale possible. For example, an action request may begenerated for each page of the print job, with the desired queriesapplicable to each page.

Step 1208 executes by receiving action request 1015 at public server1004 from printing device 1006. As noted above, public server 1004serves as the gateway to private server 1002. Step 1210 executes byprocessing action request 1015 into individual requests, such asrequests 1102, 1104, and 1106. The different requests may pertain todifferent queries from printing device 1006. In some embodiments, publicserver 1004 may not need to process the request from printing device1006. In other embodiments, action request 1015 is broken down toqueries acceptable at YES or NO questions.

Step 1212 executes by forwarding one or more requests to private server1002. Public server 1004 sends the requests via websocket connection1005, which allows communication between the two servers. Private server1002 may treat each request separately to reduce processing needs andprovide clear answers to whether document 1012 may be sent to printingdevice 1006.

Step 1214 executes by private server 1002 analyzing policy 1010 for eachrequest. This process is disclosed in greater detail above. Privateserver 1002 also may check for updates 1020 to policy 1010 upon receiptof a request from public server 1004. Step 1216 executes by determiningwhether to allow the request or requests for the print job. If step 1216is no, then step 1218 executes by sending an alert to user device 1008as well as other components within system 1000 such as public server1004 and printing device 1006. Flowchart 1200 then proceeds to step1220.

If step 1216 is yes, then step 1220 executes by generating response 1022to the requests. Response 1022 may include responses to the queries forthe print job in YES or NO answers. For example, if a request is whethera color page may be printed, response 1022 may include a NO answer ifdenied by policy 1010. In some embodiments, response 1022 may be justfor the print job request itself without answers for the individualrequests. In other embodiments, response 1022 may include specificanswers for each request. Thus, some responses may be YES while othersare NO.

Step 1222 executes by forwarding response 1022 from private server 1002to public server 1004 via websocket connection 1005. Public server 1004may record the responses in a data file at the server for futurereference. For example, if a response denies color printing, then publicserver 1004 may save this determination for later analysis, if needed.For example, if private server 1002 is not available to apply policy1010, then public server 1004 may refer to previous determinations toindicate whether an operation is acceptable.

Step 1224 executes by forwarding response 1022 from public server 1004to printing device 1006. Response 1022 also may be forwarded to userdevice 1008. Step 1226 executes by performing the action or operationwith regard to processing the print job for document 1012. Step 1226also may execute by taking no action in response to the answers providedby private server 1002 if the print job is denied.

FIG. 13 illustrates a flowchart 1300 for analyzing policy 1010 byprivate server 1002 according to the disclosed embodiments. Flowchart1300 may pertain to steps 1214-1220 disclosed above and discloses thesesteps in greater detail. FIG. 13 may refer to features of FIGS. 10-12 aswell as FIGS. 1-9 for illustrative purposes. The embodiments disclosedby flowchart 1300, however, are not limited to the features of FIGS.1-12.

Step 1302 executes by receiving a request at private server 1002. Forexample, request 1102 may be received from public server 1004 for aprint job at printing device 1006 for document 1012 stored on privateserver 1002. The request will be in the form of a YES or NO query sothat the response will also be simple and direct. Step 1304 executes bydetermining the type of request. Private server 1002 may classify therequest based on the data within the query, such as printing a page,color printing, costs, and the like. The type of request may determinewhat aspect of policy 1010 to analyze and data to compile from ledger1003. In other words, if the request corresponds to a cost to processthe requested action, then ledger 1003 does not need to compile thenumber of pages printed that day.

Step 1306 executes by compiling data from ledger 1003 based on therequest and its type. As disclosed above, ledger 1003 may includeentries for each action or operation taken on behalf of the user. Theaction, a timestamp, costs, and other information is stored withinledger 1003 to be accessed when requested. Ledger 1003 makes thecompiled data available to private server 1002.

Step 1308 executes by analyzing policy 1010 based on the compiled datafrom ledger 1003. Depending on the type of request, a part of policy1010 is reviewed to see if the proposed action or operation is allowed.In doing so, the data compiled related to the request is used to see ifthe proposed action or operation will exceed or violate the parametersof policy 1010 in some manner. For example, if the user has printed 10pages during the day, private server 1002 will analyze policy 1010 forthe page limit parameter to see if printing the next page will exceedthe daily limit. As disclosed above, private server 1002 also may takeinto account any updates or changes to policy 1010 in performing thisanalysis.

Step 1310 executes by allowing or denying the action or operation of therequest based on the analysis of policy 1010. If the action is allowed,then ledger 1003 may be updated accordingly and another entry placedtherein. If the action is denied, then an alert or other message may begenerated to printing device 1006 or user device 1008. Step 1312executes by determining whether additional requests exist to beprocessed by private server 1002. As disclosed above, print job requestsmay be broken down, or parsed, into specified requests that result in aYES or NO response. If step 1312 is no, then the response is generatedin step 1314. Private server 1002 may forward the response to publicserver 1004. If step 1312 is yes, then flowchart 1300 proceeds to step1316 to retrieve the next request and then return to step 1302.

Thus, according to the disclosed embodiments, printing device 1006 orpublic server 1004 does not need to update changes to policy 1010 as itstays on private server 1002. Further, these components do not need tobe aware or responsible for implementing policy 1010. Problems withpolicy 1010 remain invisible to the public domain devices. Further,policy and ledger data are secured in the private domain. Compiled datafrom ledger 1003 is not sent outside the private domain. Enforcement ofpolicy 1010 is performed only at private server 1002, which is capableof timely making updates or temporary changes to the policy. Ledger 1003also allows for any number of time based policies to applied to one userat any time. In other words, the user may have multiple policies 1010applicable to print jobs. Private server 1002 may access ledger 1003 toapply these policies as opposed to the different policies distributed inmultiple public servers.

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, the present inventionmay be embodied as a system, method or computer program product.Accordingly, the present invention may take the form of an entirelyhardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (includingfirmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or an embodimentcombining software and hardware aspects that may all generally bereferred to herein as a “circuit,” “module” or “system.” Furthermore,the present invention may take the form of a computer program productembodied in any tangible medium of expression having computer-usableprogram code embodied in the medium.

Any combination of one or more computer usable or computer readablemedium(s) may be utilized. The computer-usable or computer-readablemedium may be, for example but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic,optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus,device, or propagation medium. More specific examples (a non-exhaustivelist) of the computer-readable medium would include the following: anelectrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computerdiskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory(ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flashmemory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory(CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a transmission media such as thosesupporting the Internet or an intranet, or a magnetic storage device.Note that the computer-usable or computer-readable medium could even bepaper or another suitable medium upon which the program is printed, asthe program can be electronically captured, via, for instance, opticalscanning of the paper or other medium, then compiled, interpreted, orotherwise processed in a suitable manner, if necessary, and then storedin a computer memory.

Computer program code for carrying out operations of the presentinvention may be written in any combination of one or more programminglanguages, including an object oriented programming language such asJava, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional procedural programminglanguages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programminglanguages. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer,partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partlyon the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely onthe remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remotecomputer may be connected to the user's computer through any type ofnetwork, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network(WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (forexample, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).

The present invention is described with reference to flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems) andcomputer program products according to embodiments of the invention. Itwill be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/orblock diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computerprogram instructions. These computer program instructions may beprovided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purposecomputer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce amachine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor ofthe computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, createmeans for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchartand/or block diagram block or blocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof code, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be notedthat, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in theblock may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, twoblocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantiallyconcurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverseorder, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be notedthat each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, andcombinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchartillustration, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-basedsystems that perform the specified functions or acts, or combinations ofspecial purpose hardware and computer instructions.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended toinclude plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specific thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof.

Embodiments may be implemented as a computer process, a computing systemor as an article of manufacture such as a computer program product ofcomputer readable media. The computer program product may be a computerstorage medium readable by a computer system and encoding a computerprogram instructions for executing a computer process. When accessed,the instructions cause a processor to enable other components to performthe functions disclosed above.

The corresponding structures, material, acts, and equivalents of allmeans or steps plus function elements in the claims below are intendedto include any structure, material or act for performing the function incombination with other claimed elements are specifically claimed. Thedescription of the present invention has been presented for purposes ofillustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive orlimited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications andvariations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill without departingfrom the scope and spirit of the invention. The embodiment was chosenand described in order to best explain the principles of the inventionand the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill inthe art to understand the invention for embodiments with variousmodifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

One or more portions of the disclosed networks or systems may bedistributed across one or more multi-functional printer (MFP) systemscoupled to a network capable of exchanging information and data. Variousfunctions and components of the MFP system may be distributed acrossmultiple client computer platforms, or configured to perform tasks aspart of a distributed system. These components may be executable,intermediate or interpreted code that communicates over the networkusing a protocol. The components may have specified addresses or otherdesignators to identify the components within the network.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications to the disclosed may be made without departing from thespirit or scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the presentinvention covers the modifications and variations disclosed aboveprovided that these changes come within the scope of the claims andtheir equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for implementing a policy-based printingsystem, the method comprising: receiving a request at a private serverfrom a public server in a public domain, wherein the request correspondsto an action to be performed at a printing device in the public domain;compiling data from a ledger at the private server regarding the action;analyzing a policy for the user at the private server using the compileddata, wherein the policy includes a parameter related to the action;determining whether the action of the request is allowed at the printingdevice according to the policy; and generating a response based upon thedetermination to allow or deny the action of the request.
 2. The methodof claim 1, further comprising determining the private server at thepublic server using an email address for the user.
 3. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising initializing a protocol connection betweenthe public server and the private server.
 4. The method of claim 1,further comprising forwarding the response to the public server.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising processing the request at thepublic server.
 6. The method of claim 5, further comprising receivingthe request at the public server from the printing device.
 7. The methodof claim 1, further comprising receiving an action request at the publicserver, wherein the public server processes the action request togenerate the request.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the request isin a YES or NO query format.
 9. A method for implementing policy-basedprinting, the method comprising: receiving a plurality of requests at aprivate server corresponding to a print job for processing a documentstored at the private server; determining a type for each request,wherein the type correlates to a parameter in a policy applicable to theprint job; compiling data from a ledger based on the type of request;determining whether to allow each request based on the compiled data andthe parameters in the policy; and generating a response for theplurality of requests.
 10. The method of claim 9, further comprisingcompiling data from entries in the ledger, wherein the entries areselected based on the type of request.
 11. The method of claim 9,further comprising receiving the plurality of requests from a publicserver connected to a printing device.
 12. The method of claim 11,wherein the private server is in a private domain and the public serveris in a public domain.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprisingnot allowing access to policy by the public server.
 14. The method ofclaim 9, further comprising updating the policy at the private server,wherein at least one request of the plurality of request pertain thepolicy update.
 15. A printing system comprising: a public server coupledto a printing device in a public domain to receive a requestcorresponding to a print job of a document; a private server in aprivate domain, the private server is configured to store the documentand to analyze a policy applicable to a user of the printing device,wherein the private server includes a ledger having at least one entryfor actions taken by the user and wherein the public server has aprotocol connection to the private server, wherein the private serverreceives the request from the public server, wherein the private servercompiles data from the ledger based upon the request, and wherein theprivate server analyzes the policy to determine whether to allow or denythe request based on the compiled data.
 16. The printing system of claim15, wherein the private server provides an authentication token based onuser information provided by the public server.
 17. The printing systemof claim 15, further comprising a user device of the user to instructthe printing device to process the print job within the public domain.18. The printing system of claim 15, wherein the private server compilesdata from the ledger based on a type of the request.
 19. The printingsystem of claim 15, wherein the private server adds an entry to theledger if the request is allowed.
 20. The printing system of claim 15,wherein the private server is configured to deny access to the policybased on the public domain of the user.